Epidemiology News and Research

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Time to remove the stigma associated with incontinence

An independent panel convened this week by the NIH found that fewer than half of individuals experiencing fecal or urinary incontinence - the inability to control bowel movements or urination, respectively - report their symptoms to healthcare providers without being prompted.

13 Dec 2007

New UK Centre for Zoonosis Research to open in Liverpool

The UK's National Centre for Zoonosis Research, dedicated to the study of animal-borne human diseases, will be opened at the University of Liverpool.

12 Dec 2007

Scientists seek to assess the microbial risks in the water we drink

It is a familiar scenario experienced around the world: an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness suddenly emerges in a community, and no one knows where it came from or how to stop it. At the start of the outbreak, only a few people are affected, most often the very old and the very young.

12 Dec 2007

Abdominal obesity predicts heart disease

Abdominal obesity is a strong independent risk factor for heart disease, and using the waist-hip ratio rather than waist measurement alone is a better predictor of heart disease risk among men and women, researchers reported in a study published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

10 Dec 2007

Research findings link weight gain and diabetes to a variety of cancers

During this holiday season with its tempting bounty of edible delights, new research calls attention to the role of the expanding American waistline in health and medicine.

10 Dec 2007

Effects of diet and physical activity on the possibility of developing lung cancer

By simply eating four or more servings of green salad a week and working in the garden once or twice a week, smokers and nonsmokers alike may be able to substantially reduce the risk of developing lung cancer, say researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

10 Dec 2007

Fever may restore nerve cell communications in regions of the autistic brain

The behavior of children with autism may improve during a fever, according to a first-of-kind study, "Behaviors Associated With Fever in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders," published Nov. 30 in Pediatrics.

10 Dec 2007

Mobile phones increase the risk of tumours

Israeli researchers say they have found that the regular use of mobile phones increases the risk of developing tumours.

10 Dec 2007

Obesity all set to make future generations fatter and sicker

Researchers from the United States and Denmark are warning that unless steps are taken to reverse the growth in the number of obese children, future generations will be both fatter and sicker than their parents.

6 Dec 2007

60 year mark reached in long-term radiation study

For the past 60 years, the National Academies have studied the health effects of radiation exposure in Japanese survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.

5 Dec 2007

Chips and crisps on a daily basis raise a woman's cancer risk

Dutch scientists say by eating crisps or chips on a daily basis a woman could be doubling her risk of ovarian or womb cancer.

4 Dec 2007

Immediate relatives of patients with Parkinson's disease face increased risk of depression/anxiety disorders

Immediate relatives (brother, sister, mother, father, son or daughter) of people who have Parkinson's disease are at increased risk for developing depression and anxiety disorders, according to a new study by Mayo Clinic.

4 Dec 2007

Satellites used for European health early warning and epidemiology exercise

An earthquake has just shaken the Greek island. Damage is widespread and all conventional, terrestrial communications have been destroyed. The rescue operations have only one means at their disposal that has not been affected by the quake - a satellite which, from its altitude of 36 000 kilometres, can immediately link the locations involved in the catastrophe with the appropriate authorities.

3 Dec 2007

HIV rates among MSM vastly higher than general population in developing countries

Responding to a new study demonstrating the severity of the HIV epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) in low- and middle-income countries, amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, called on policymakers to put aside their prejudices and to provide the resources and the leadership that the epidemic demands.

3 Dec 2007

Low standards of child wellbeing linked to greater income inequality

Narrower income differences are more likely than economic growth to improve the wellbeing of children in rich countries, according to a study published on bmj.com.

29 Nov 2007

Latest on research on cancer prevention

Perhaps the best way to fight cancer is to prevent it from developing in the first place.

29 Nov 2007

New figures show an alarming incidence of HIV in MSM

On World AIDS Day 2007, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of men who have sex with men (MSM) will become infected with HIV in cities across the Asia Pacific, becoming the latest statistics in an almost unrecognized but ever-growing crisis that many governments in the region are only just beginning to grapple with.

29 Nov 2007